Growing your potatoes can be fun but challenging if you don’t do it right. What’s worse? You might just harvest sickly, greenish spud. Growing healthy potato varieties doesn’t have to be a chore. With the right planting method, you are on your way to growing healthy potatoes with great yield. The good news is, healthy potatoes can be grown in bags and cans if you don’t have a garden. Nothing beats the idea of a pot.

How to Grow Healthy Potatoes

Growing healthy potatoes start from knowing what potato variety you want to grow. Next, decide whether you want to grow it in a bag or garden.

Growing Healthy Potatoes in your Garden

Potatoes grow healthy with full sunlight, fertile soil, and a cool environment that doesn’t expose them directly to the sun. Follow these steps to grow healthy potato varieties.

• Prepare your soil by digging deep, about 6 inches, and adding lots of organic materials or compost.
• Buy seed potatoes that have already sprouted or have eyes(bumps where sprouts emerge)
• Cut the potatoes into small sizes that have at least two eyes.
• Next, leave the potatoes for about 2- 3days or place them outside to “cure.”
• Plant each cut potato into a 6-inch-deep hole. Leave a space of about 12-inches apart on all sides.
• Between an all-purpose fertilizer. Then cover both potatoes and fertilizer with 2-inches of soil, and water the soil well.
• As the potatoes grow and have lateral stems, hill” the vines, bury with more soil, or shredded leaves. Hilling helps to protect the potato from direct sunlight. This makes healthy potatoes.
• Plant your potatoes about 2 feet apart to make weeding easier.
• Depending on potato varieties, it takes a potato about less than 80 -100 days or more before it can be harvested.

Growing Healthy Potatoes in a Container

If you don’t have a garden or enough space, then the next best option is to grow them in a container. Growing potatoes in a container make harvesting easier, but the yield may not be so great. Use a potato variety that matures quickly in about 70- 90 days.

• Choose a container that is breathable or punch holes in a plastic one.
• Place the container in a place with access to full sunlight for about 6-8 hours daily.
• Plant your potatoes when there is no danger of frost. Then fill the container with fertilized soil.
• Cut your potatoes into chunks with eyes on them.
• Plant your potatoes 3 inches deep and 5 inches apart from each other.
• As they grow, cover them with more soil.

Conclusion

Growing healthy potatoes can be fun! Plant and care for them well enough, you get to enjoy great yield.